Steam Era Freight Cars

Review: Walthers 46’ USRA Steel Gondola
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Product Name: Walthers USRA Steel Gondola – Ready-to-Run – New York Central
Product Scale: HO
Product Number: 7453
Purchase Price: $13.98 plus shipping
Purchased From: Walthers web site (www.walthers.com)
Product Description: Ready-to-run model with unattached grab irons to be added should the modeler choose to do so.
Read Tom Gloger's addendum

In January, 2002, Walthers released ready-to-run versions of the 46’ USRA 70-ton mill gondola (click here for prototype information about these cars) in HO scale. Walthers is to be roundly applauded for the selection of this particular prototype as it was the backbone of the gondola fleet for several railroads of the Northeast during the 1920’s and 1930’s and could be seen throughout the country in general service. Because of the numbers produced, it was an extremely important prototype that 99.9% of model railroaders should have at least one example of in their rolling stock rosters. Walthers has also released examples of LCL containers as loads for some of these cars (more on this later). Again, I would like to reiterate my applause for Walthers for recognizing the significance of this car and producing injection molded models of it.

Upon removing the model from its box, I felt that it did a good job at capturing the basic look of the car. Rivet detail was appropriately sized (the prototype might have been a bit smaller, but the kit’s rivets are well within this reviewer’s acceptable limits). The model also captures the look of the fishbelly underframe quite well. Dimensionally, the kit's exterior dimensions are accurate. There is no detail on the interior of the car. A closer inspection of the model did reveal several shortcomings and some pleasant surprises.

The ends of the car capture the general look well, but lack many of the key features of this class of gondolas. On the B-end of the car, the prototype had a circular depression (see photo of Westerfield end) to accommodate the brake wheel. The kit contains no such depression. These cars had drop ends, but the kit's ends are fixed in the “up” position. The door locking mechanisms are present, but due to the doors being fixed on the model, the door locks do not have sufficient relief to be as prominent as I would have liked (although they are very close to scale size.) The brake wheel and staff on the prototype was an engineering compromise intended to allow the carmen to apply or unapply the brakes and yet pivot to be dropped out of the way when the ends were in the dropped position. Walthers did not even attempt to incorporate this into the models. In addition, Walthers chose not to model any one specific brake wheel (there were a few different types on the prototypes), but rather created a generic brake wheel that represents none of them. The kit also does not include any type of cut lever/uncoupling device. A number of the prototypes were equipped with the Carmer cut lever. This was a potential opportunity for the modeling community to finally have Carmer cut levers that could have been injection molded in durable delrin, but it was not to be.

The sides of the car are primarily without problems from a dimensional standpoint. Rivets for the tie-downs on the inside of the car have been correctly included on the outside of the sides. The retainer is in the proper place and the line on the car side to the triple valve is represented quite delicately. However, the lettering is another issue entirely. Given the number of photos of these cars that exist, lettering flaws are inexcusable! The car number, NYC 501536 was a real car on the NYC roster. However, the NYC Lot number on the car side, C22-G is not only incorrect for this car, but incorrect for any NYC car! The lot number for this particular car should be 622-G (Walthers was close, but not accurate), built in 1927 by General American and converted to Brick & Coke container service. The car is properly lettered to be used for LCL container service. The build date on this car, 9-27 is plausible. The reweigh date is AO 5-47 which is an accurate NYC facility (Ashtabula, OH).

The following comment relates to both the sides and ends so it has been placed here. Walthers chose to include separate wire grab irons that the modeler must attach. Kudos to Walthers for taking this giant step!!! The modeler is instructed that if he/she wants to add the grab irons, he/she must drill #80 holes in the proper locations to insert them Unfortunately, I doubt that the average “shake-the-box” modeler owns a #80 drill bit. However, the effort to include separate wire grab irons should not be lost in all of this – again – compliments to Walthers for recognizing the desire of modelers to have separate details!

The interior of the car represents the bare minimum and little else - the sides and ends contains no detail at all, just flat plastic. The floor is simulated wood planking, like the prototype. Not having any detail on the interior of the sides and ends in 2002 is not acceptable. Given that this kit is at the same relative price point as the Proto 2000 gondola kits (fully assembled) it should have comparable detailing. A blank interior is, quite simply, intolerable. Walthers should be taken to task for this. However, I assume that their hope is that modelers will fill all of these blank interiors with Walthers LCL containers (thereby disguising the lack of detail), even though cars in LCL service were not supposed to stray far offline (if at all) making the cars loaded with LCL containers inappropriate for all but NYC, PRR and B&O modelers. Further, given the fact that the vast majority of these gondolas were used for regular ladings, not LCL containers, it was foolish for Walthers to engineer a kit that steers modelers to the exception rather than the rule.

The underframe proved to be the area with the fewest problems. One bonus is that Walthers created the slots in the underframe to allow those who desire to add the proper brake levers, to do so easily – bravo! The AB brake equipment is quite simplistic and is probably best replaced if one chooses to add brake piping. All of the crossbearers are adequately represented and are in the proper places.

The kit includes cast sideframe trucks produced in an engineering plastic. The trucks are fitted with plastic wheelsets on brass axles. Walthers has not followed the lead of many other manufacturers who are now including metal wheel sets as standard offerings in all their trucks (one manufacturer even included .088” tread-width metal wheel sets in a recent offering!) Again, it is 2002, not 1972 – charge a buck more and include the wheel sets that modelers desire. Brown plastic, Kadee-compatible couplers including metal centering pins come pre-assembled in the coupler pockets (screw on).

Walthers has lettered these cars for several roads with varying degrees of accuracy. They chose to include a few roads that had the cars – The New York Central, Pennsylvania and the Baltimore & Ohio. They ignored the New York Central subsidiaries and the Reading (that had 1,000s of these cars in a few different versions!) They created entirely bogus lettering schemes for railroads that never owned these cars or any within even a foot dimensionally - the Erie, Lehigh Valley, Nickel Plate and Missouri Pacific. In addition, while creating the utterly fictitious cars referenced in the previous sentence, they ignored two possible paint schemes that are not entirely accurate, but certainly more plausible – the Wheeling & Lake Erie (a 46’ steel-floored mill gon built in 1916 that was a precursor to the USRA design) and Canadian National (a 46’ steel gon with drop ends that is not prototypically represented by the Walthers kit, but is more plausible than the other bogus schemes – Westerfield offers an accurate resin kit for these CN gons – Westerfield web site).

Walthers selected a great prototype and delivered a model that offers a basic product, but not in the leagues of Branchline, Red Caboose, Intermountain or Proto 2000. However, I commend Walthers for incorporating details such as separate grab irons and slots through the center sills for brake levers. Nonetheless, even if you require a fleet of these cars, my only recommendation is to go the extra mile with the Westerfield kits (Westerfield web site). They are cast as one-piece bodies with significantly more detail and the extra effort is well worth it. Memo to Walthers: ask for the help and guidance of freight car historians in future for items such as lettering. Send an email to manufacturers@steamfreightcars.com. We will gladly gather the necessary resources and guarantee confidentiality.

Ted Culotta
tculotta@steamfreightcars.com

Tom Gloger forwarded the following addendum to this review:

"When I removed the trucks to work on the problem I had with the flanges occasionally rubbing the crossbearers, I found 0.007" shim washers under the trucks.

I had already found the couplers on my sample to be too high, so I removed the washers, and added 0.020" shims to the coupler pockets to lower the coupler and take up slack. The 0.020" shims helped the height problem, but I had to turn the coupler box covers over so the couplers could move again. I countersunk the holes in the cover, and used flathead screws.

I shaved the corner off of the crossbearer that the flange was finding, and even without the 0.007" washer, the car now rolls smoothly over rough, 18" radius track.

The finished model weighs approximately 2.0 ounces.

Walthers did not include any extra grab irons."

46’ USRA Steel Gondola (Ready to Run) - $13.98 each

7450 – Undecorated
7451 – Baltimore & Ohio
7452 – Pennsylvania, later large Keystone herald
7453 – New York Central
7454 – Erie
7455 – Nickel Plate Road
7456 – Western Maryland
7457 – Missouri Pacific
7458 - Lehigh Valley
Later roadname additions:
7459 - Wheeling & Lake Erie
7460 - Canadian National
7461 - Reading
7462 - Pittsburgh & Lake Erie
7463 - Pennsylvania, Circle Keystone
7464 - New York Central, early paint scheme
7465 - Delaware & Hudson

46' USRA Steel Gondola Limited-Run 2-Packs (Ready to Run) - $27.98 each

27451 - Baltimore & Ohio
27452 - Pennsylvania
27453 - New York Central
27454 - Erie
27455 - Nickel Plate Road
27456 - Western Maryland
27457 - Missouri Pacific
27458 - Lehigh Valley
Later roadname additions:
27459 - Wheeling & Lake Erie
27460 - Canadian National
27461 - Reading
27462 - Pittsburgh & Lake Erie
27463 - Pennsylvania, Circle Keystone
27464 - New York Central, early paint scheme
27465 - Delaware & Hudson

LCL Bulk Material Containers - $10.98 for three (3)

2100 - Undecorated
2101 - Baltimore & Ohio
2102 - Pennsylvania
2103 - New York Central
2104 - Erie
2105 - Nickel Plate Road
2106 - Western Maryland
2107 - Missouri Pacific
2108 - Lehigh Valley

Coke Container - $10.98 for three (3)

2120 - Undecorated
2121 - Baltimore & Ohio
2122 - Pennsylvania
2123 - New York Central
2124 - Erie
2125 - Nickel Plate Road
2126 - Western Maryland
2127 - Missouri Pacific
2128 - Lehigh Valley